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Review: Middle England

★★★☆☆
Three Stars

Middle England is not feel-good theatre. Two families are brought together, but also pitted against one another, when their eight-year-old daughters disappear on the same day. The show is engineered to be disturbing; it aims to shake us out of our complacency in observing other people’s tragedy. The acting was aided by clever staging and sound design, leaving me on the edge of my seat.

What didn’t work so well was the plot. It was a shame that such a great setup did not lead to a satisfying conclusion. But this is a fault that lies with the play and not the production.

The beginning was the most exciting part. The opening scene, when both couples experience the initial shock of realising their children are gone, was amazing. Both events were staged simultaneously with the four characters talking over each other, and the emotion of each dialogue magnified that of the other. This scene worked particularly well in the setting of the Burton Taylor Studio – spectators were seated facing different directions. Each member of the audience had a privileged view of one of the two families and identified with their story more readily, but at the same time understood that this bias was arbitrary as we are all equal in the face of loss.

I loved the each parent’s soliloquy, delivered while sitting amidst the audience. In fact, these were more interview than soliloquy; the characters acted as though they were answering an unseen interlocutor’s questions. We, the audience, were implicated in the interrogation.

Sheets which read, ‘MISSING: GRACE, 8 years old’ contributed to the disturbing atmosphere, as did the ever-present TV screen in the back. The sound of cameras rolling or of static noise signalled breaks between scenes; at times the space darkened, and we heard recorded interviews with the characters. The sparse production incorporated aspects of multimedia and was a credit to the stage designers.

However, what ensued was less exciting. I expected the media to play a more active role in the development of the plot; instead, it remained there as a background while the story turned into the discovery of an old affair: the play morphed into melodrama rather than media critique. It must also be noted that Ken, one of the main characters, practically disappeared towards the end. Whereas the two mothers met and formed a touching bond, the men did not really interact; it felt like Ken was left by the wayside. Nevertheless, this is a professionally produced, highly emotional, sobering show that is worth an hour of your time. 

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